Apple Mac mini MB138LL/A (1.83 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo, 1 GB RAM, 80 GB Hard Drive, Combo Drive)

Apple has not updated the lowly Mini in quite awhile & if everything I read online is true, it looks like they're never going to. Lots of people think they might be dropping it. I think that would be a big mistake. They should drop their silly Apple TV instead & keep this baby in their line up, because it's a solid performer.

Well, not solid as a desktop computer, I wouldn't say that, but stick it under your TV, then hook it up via the Video out (you'll have 2 buy an adaptor so you can hook into one of your TV's HDMI ports), & you're good 2 go, TVwise that is.

You don't need a Video player, because you can just used the DVD player on your Mini. You can watch Hulu or Joost on your TV. You can even check your e-mail. And if you have your TV hooked up 2 a good stereo system, mine goes into an old, but still working wonderfully, Yamaha Amp which powers four JBL Studio Monitors, you can listen 2 your iTunes library on it. Of course, if you have a lot of music, then you'll want an external hard drive. I have two LaCie 500 gig hard drives under my Mini which match it in looks & form factor & I have tons of music as well as lots of movies on them.

Maybe Apple didn't intend the Mini 2 be an under the TV controller, but it works beautifully as one. So please Apple keep the Mini in your lineup.

Reviewed by Stephanie Sane

The Mac mini is really terrific! I previously had a Mac G4 that I
loved. This is 10X better with lots of new programs, & super fast!

Arrived promptly & in perfect condition. What was especially nice was making the selection I wanted without having 2 defend my choice 2 the member of some sales crew or fending off service contract offers.

This is my third mac. I upgraded the RAM 2 3gb using other world computing ram. The computer runs great. It was a little slow with the stock 1gb, but I love this thing now. I have two external hard drives. One 4 media files & one 4 time machine. I use a xbox 360 4 games, so game performance is not an issue. I have done several home videos & it works fine. You do want 2 get the older version of imovie though because you can put chapters in your DVDs.

I have the 1.66mhz core duo version. It came with 512mb of ram, which I upgraded 2 2gb. Doing your own ram upgrade is somewhat of a nightmare, even 4 someone familiar with the insides of a pc. The mini is not made like a pc, or like a notebook, & is really not designed 2 be opened by the user. If you want 2 upgrade your ram from the current 1gb standard, you are probably better off letting a pro do it. Same 4 the hard drive. There's a video on how its done at macsales.com.

Overall I am happy with this computer. It runs Leopard just fine, boots quickly, & has no difficulty with basic computer software: safari or firefox, iphoto, itunes, open office, etc.

I've tried 2 use vmware fusion 2 run xp simultaneously, & it works, but even with 2gb of ram the system performance takes a hit. Alternatively, running xp via bootcamp works well. xp is speedy & has no hardware compatibility issues. It's a hassle 2 have 2 reboot into xp & then reboot again back 2 OSX, but I only use xp once in awhile. If you need 2 constantly use windows programs, consider the imac or a more powerful mini which should have the power necessary 2 run virtualization software smoothly.

Don't be fooled by the mini's size. Even though it is very small, & pretty darn cute, it has 2 be placed on your desk, whereas a standard pc tower is best placed under the desk. Therefore, as small as it is, the mini takes up more desk space than an under-desk pc. All the cables that normally create a mess on the floor attached 2 a pc tower (monitor, printer, network, mouse, keyboard, ipod, camera, external hard drive, etc.) are going 2 be on your desk, rather than under it. I pushed the mini as far 2 the back of my desk as possible so the cables flop behind the desktop & hang down. Doing so eliminates cable clutter on my desk, but means it's a little inconvenient 2 use the optical drive & the power button (which is on the rear panel).

The mini has built in bluetooth & wi-fi so you might want 2 consider wireless options 2 reduce the # of cables.

This isn't really a criticism, but the sound via a standard mini-plug is about as mediocre as you'd get from built-in motherboard sound on a PC. (I haven't used the mini's optical sound option). If you use your computer 2 listen 2 music you might want 2 consider an external sound card, since you can't put a dedicated sound card inside the mini. I have a creative labs xmod, which is a usb device & sounds great.

I've given the mini 4 stars as it's the least expensive way 2 enjoy OSX, & 4 basic needs does a great job. It's extremely quiet & stays cool. I subtracted a star in view of the power button placement, & difficulty upgrading the ram & hard drive.

The Mac Mini features the powerful 1.83GHz Intel Core 2 Duo processor. It has two cores, so it's like having two 1.83GHz processors in one! Another great feature is the suite of applications in iLife '08. A full-featured collection of programs that are designed 2 let you easily take control of your creative projects. iPhoto organizes your digital pics, & has a cool feature that groups them by event. iWeb makes it easy 2 create your own website. iMovie & iDVD lets you edit your videos & make your own DVD movies. GarageBand gives you the tools 2 make your own music, & even start your own virtual band! All of this & more is packed inside a svelt & stylish 6.5" body that can fit anywhere! 2 RAM Slots (occupied) 80GB 5400RPM SATA HDD Slot-loading DVD-ROM/CD-RW Combo Drive - reads DVDs up 2 8x, writes CD-Rs up 2 24x, & writes CD-RWs up 2 16x Intel GMA 950 Graphics Processor with 64MB of shared memory (memory is shared with the main system) Ports - 1 10/100/1000 Gigabit Ethernet, 1 Firewire 400 (8 watts), 4 USB 2.0, 1 DVI Out, 1 VGA Out (using included adapter) Built-in Speakers Built-in AirPort Extreme Wi-Fi 802.11g wireless network card Built-in Bluetooth 2.0+EDR (Enhanced Data Rate) module Unit Dimensions - 2 (h) x 6.5 (w) x 6.5 (d) Unit Weight - 2.9 lbs.

A great choice 4 home computing tasks & creating a digital media hub, Apple's Mac mini desktop PC combines design simplicity with powerful computing resources. Nicely compact at just 6.5 inches square & 2 inches high, the Mac mini offers an affordable avenue 2 dual-core processing power via the 1.83 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo & Apple's latest suite of digital media applications--iLife '08. It also comes with the Apple Remote & Front Row media display software, which enables you 2 easily play your music, enjoy photo slideshows, & watch DVDs, iMovies, music videos & television shows from across the room.

200 cellpadding=10>

Inside its 2-inch-tall, 6.5-inch-square anodized aluminum enclosure, the Mac mini houses the fast Intel Core 2 Duo processor.

This Mac mini also features 1 GB of installed RAM (with a 2 GB maximum capacity), 80 GB hard drive, a combo DVD-RAM/CD-RW drive 4 watching DVD movie discs & burning your own mixes 2 CD, Gigabit Ethernet wired networking & 802.11b/g wireless LAN, & the Mac OS X v10.5 Leopard operating system. You'll have 2 supply your own keyboard, mouse, & display.

Preinstalled with iLife '08
Every Mac mini includes iLife '08, the latest version of Apple's award-winning suite of digital media applications, with major upgrades 2 iPhoto, iDVD, iWeb, & GarageBand & a completely reinvented iMovie. iPhoto '08 now automatically organizes photo libraries into Events that let you more easily manage your growing photo collections, & iMovie '08 can import video from the latest AVCHD, HDV & DV camcorders, as well as from digital cameras, & displays your entire video library whether it's stored on internal or external drives. Both iPhoto & iMovie integrate seamlessly with the new .Mac Web Gallery, Apple's new service 4 .Mac members 2 instantly create & host websites 4 their photos & videos.

250 cellpadding=10>

The pre-installed iLife '08 software suite includes a completely redesigned iMovie, which makes it even easier 2 share your videos on the Internet.

iLife '08 also features iWeb '08, with live web widgets such as Google Maps that let you create even more dynamic websites, & GarageBand '08, with its new Magic GarageBand feature that makes it fun & easy 4 both musicians & non-musicians 2 create great sounding songs.

Intel Core 2 Duo Processor
The Intel Core 2 Duo T5600 processor has a 1.83 GHz processor speed, fast 667 MHz front-side bus (FSB), & large 2 MB L2 cache. (An L2, or secondary, cache temporarily stores data; & a larger L2 cache can help speed up your system's performance. The FSB carries data between the CPU & RAM, & a faster front-side bus will deliver better overall performance.)

The Intel Core 2 Duo's 128-bit SSE3 vector engine handles 128-bit computations in a single clock cycle, accelerating data manipulation by simultaneously applying a single instruction 2 multiple data. And its two execution cores are designed 2 share resources & conserve power, helping it 2 achieve higher levels of performance since it uses fewer watts.

Wired & Wireless Connectivity

The small form of the Mac mini features several ports 4 a variety of different devices.

The Mac mini gives you plenty of room 2 grow with four USB 2.0 ports on the back--for connecting devices such as cameras, iPod, printer, camcorder, or keyboard--as well as a FireWire 400 port, which enables super-fast connectivity 2 hard drives as well as digital video camcorders. Share files around your house with built-in 10/100/1000BASE-T Ethernet as well as 54g Wi-Fi (802.11b/g). The integrated Bluetooth wireless connectivity--version 2.0 + Enhanced Data Rate (EDR)--allows you 2 use a wireless keyboard or mouse, & synchronize peripherals such as cell phones & PDAs. Enjoy high-quality sound on almost any speaker system with double-duty analog/digital audio. Record digital & analog sources through audio line in, perfect 4 your latest podcast in GarageBand.

Graphics & Video
The Mac mini has a DVI video output that supports digital resolutions up 2 1920 by 1200 pixels & is compatible with the 20-inch Apple Cinema Display & 23-inch Apple Cinema HD Display. It also supports coherent digital displays up 2 154 MHz, & non-coherent digital displays up 2 135 MHz. Using the included VGA video adapter, you can connect 2 analog displays at a resolution up 2 1920 by 1080 pixels. Video is powered by the Intel Graphics Media Accelerator 950, which uses Intel Dynamic Video Memory Technology (DVMT) & provides up 2 64 MB of shared video memory.

Other Features

• 1 GB of 667 MHz DDR2 SDRAM (PC2-5300) on two SO-DIMM with a 2 GB maximum capacity
• Slot-loading Combo drive (DVD-ROM/CD-RW): reads DVDs at up 2 8x speed, writes CD-R discs at up 2 24x speed, writes CD-RW discs at up 2 16x speed, & reads CDs at up 2 24x speed
• Built-in speaker
• Meets ENERGY STAR requirements with maximum continuous power of 110 watts

Included Software
Mac OS X v10.5 Leopard operating system (includes Spotlight, Dashboard, Mail, iChat AV, Safari, Address Book, QuickTime, iCal, DVD Player, Xcode Developer Tools); iLife '08 (includes iTunes, iPhoto, iMovie, iDVD, iWeb, GarageBand); Microsoft Office 2004 4 Mac Test Drive; iWork (30-day trial); & Front Row

What's in the Box
Mac mini, Apple Remote, power cord, install/restore DVDs, printed & electronic documentation